the new leader in north korea, kim jong un, is in power. but it is a famously closed society. there's certainly a fear of nuclear escalation and there have been shakeups within the north korean military. whether or not that's an internal power struggle, we do not know. one of the top generals was perhaps killed by mortar fire. perhaps that is something that obama will bring to the table on his trip to asia, but i think there is a consistent policy that we want to prevent nuclear escalation in the region and it is true for all sides. japan, south korea, china, and other areas. we just do not know a lot about him and his policies going forward. to suggest that he would be a reformer and a new voice for the north korean people, it's just to read it -- too early to say. host: good morning, john. you are breaking up there. are you still with us? i think we're going to move on. sorry. maybe you can call back on a better line. arkansas. republican caller? caller: alaska. appear in ron paul country. they spend a lot of money to convert the alaskan republican party to rahm paul. benjam